Archery scope

ABSTRACT

An archery scope includes a housing open at both ends and having a longitudinal axis. The housing has a tapered inner surface defining a narrow portion intermediate the ends of the housing. The tapered narrow portion provides a Ventrui-like effect where the interior of the housing appears substantially circular when viewed from various angles relative to the housing axis. A sight assembly is adjustably connected with the narrow portion of the housing inner surface and includes a ring having a diameter corresponding with an inner diameter of the housing and a sight portion coaxial with the ring and housing.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As archery grows in popularity, there is a greater demand for improvedaccuracy. This applies both to hunting and to tournament archery. Thereis a need for sighting devices which assist the archer in aligning thebow with the target. The present invention relates to an improved scopewhich is attached to a bow and which enables the archer to properlyposition the bow and focus on the target with greater precision thanconventional scopes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Archery scopes and sights are well known in the prior art as evidence bythe US patent to Khoshnood No. 6,601,308 which discloses a bow sightwith an illuminated target pin or crosshair. A fiber optic filament iswound a number of times around the sight to collect ambient light andsupply it via the filament to an end portion thereof which is attachedto a pin or crosshair of the sight. The lit bow sight allows the hunteror archer to sight targets in low light environments.

The Summers et al U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/332,410 disclosesan archery sight with an improved scope and sight pin arrangement. Thescope has an inner surface which tapers from the ends toward the middleof the scope to provide a Venturi-like effect to assist the user insighting a target when viewed off-angle, i.e. when the user is notviewing the target and sight pin straight on through the sight. Thesight pin includes a body component which is inserted through an openingin the scope and which receives an optical fiber which terminates at theend of the sight pin to provide a sight indicator for the user to alignwith the target.

While the prior devices operate satisfactorily, they are somewhatlimited in that they can not be modified by the user to suit the user'spersonal preferences. The present invention was developed in order toovercome these and other drawbacks of the prior archery sights byproviding an improved scope designed to fit the user's preferences andincrease the accuracy of the archer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is a primary object of the invention to provide anarchery scope including a generally cylindrical housing open at bothends and having a longitudinal axis. The housing has an inner surfacewhich tapers from the ends toward to the middle to define narrowedportion intermediate the ends of the housing which provides aVenturi-like effect. A sight assembly is adjustably connected with thenarrowed portion of the housing inner surface. The sight assemblyincludes a ring having a diameter corresponding with the inner diameterof the housing and a sight portion coaxial with the ring and thehousing.

The housing contains an annular seat within the narrowed portion againstwhich the ring of the sight assembly is arranged and an external annularflange generally coplanar with the portion of the narrowed portion ofthe housing which has the smallest diameter and with the sight portion.An annular retainer is threadably connected with the housing and pressesthe sight assembly ring against the seat when the retainer is connectedwith the housing. The seat contains a plurality of equally spacedopenings for receiving pegs attached to the sight assembly ring. Thus,the angular orientation of the ring relative to the housing may beadjusted by selecting into which openings the pegs are inserted.

An annular indicator ring is provided between the sight assembly ringand the retainer. The indictor ring is only visible to the user when thebow is under excessive torque. Thus, the ring assists the user indetermining when the bow is torqued at full draw, resulting in greateraccuracy.

The housing is connected with a sight via a yoke. In this manner, thescope is more securely connected because the yoke includes two armportions for connection with the housing at spaced locations. Such aconnection eliminates vibrations between the scope and housing andprevents the scope from detaching from the housing over time.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the sight assemblyincludes a sight pin connected with the ring and having an end definingthe sight portion. The sight pin includes an optical fiber having oneend at the sight portion and having a length coiled around the ring forreceiving ambient light via openings in the housing which communicatewith the narrowed portion of the housing inner wall.

A lens assembly may be provided for use with or without the sight pin.The lens assembly is preferably arranged within the housing between theretainer and the indicator ring. If no sight pin is provided, indiciasuch as a decal containing a round dot or a small circular ring may beprovided on the lens surface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent froma study of the following specification when viewed in the light of theaccompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the archery scope according to apreferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the scope of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of the housing for the scope of FIG.1;

FIGS. 4, 5, and 6 are side, front, and rear views, respectively, of thehousing of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the housing taken along line 7-7 of FIG.5;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are front and rear perspective views, respectively, of thesight pin ring assembly of the scope of FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the scope according to a preferredembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the scope according to an alternateembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 12 is a front view of the scope of the embodiment of FIG. 11 whenused on a bow under proper torque;

FIG. 13 is a front view of the scope of FIG. 1 when used on a bow underproper torque; and

FIG. 14 is a front view of the scope of FIG. 1 showing the indicatorring when used on a bow which has been over-torqued at full draw.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The archery scope 2 according to the invention is shown in an assembledcondition in FIG. 1 and in an exploded condition in FIG. 2. It includesa housing 4, a ring pin assembly 6, an indicator ring 8, a lens assembly10 and a retainer 12. A yoke 14 is provided to connect the scope with asight, not shown.

The housing will be described more particularly in connection with FIGS.3-7. It has a generally cylindrical configuration extending along alongitudinal axis and is open at both ends. At one end, the housingincludes internal threads 16 for removably connecting the retainer 12. Aplurality of spaced openings 18 are provided in the housing to allowambient light to enter the housing adjacent to the ring pin assembly 6as will be developed in greater detail below. The inner surface of thehousing is tapered from the ends toward the middle portion to define anarrow portion 20 intermediate the ends of the housing which produces aVenturi-like effect. The position with the narrowest diameter issometimes referred to as the waist point of the scope. Within the narrowportion, the housing contains an annular step 22 against which the ringpin assembly is positioned. The step contains a plurality of openings 24which are arranged in equally spaced relation around the step as shownin FIG. 6. The housing also includes an outer annular flange 26 which isgenerally coplanar with the step as shown in FIGS. 2 and 7.

The ring pin assembly 6 is shown in more detail in FIGS. 8 and 9. Itincludes an annular ring 28 having an outer diameter which correspondsgenerally with the inner diameter of the housing at the narrow portion20 thereof. The ring 28 contains an opening for receiving a sight pinassembly including a molded, roll-formed, or bent pin body 32 and atube-like part 34 which terminates in the center of the ring. An opticalfiber 36 is wound about the outer surface of the ring, with an endportion of the fiber being threaded through the pin body and terminatingat the end of the tube-like part to provide an illuminated point whichpermits aiming of an archery shot in the same manner as do crosshairs ona sight.

The ring 28 of the ring pin assembly includes at least a pair of pegs 38which are diametrically opposed on the front surface of the ring. Whenthe ring 28 is positioned within the housing 4 against the housing step22, the pegs engage a pair of opposed openings 24 in the housing step toanchor the ring in a selected angular position relative to the housing.In this manner, the ring pin body can be oriented in a location withinthe scope as selected by the archer by positioning the pegs into aselected pair of opposed openings, with the end of the tube-like partbeing retained in the center of the ring and thus within the center ofthe scope along the longitudinal axis of the housing. In addition, thering pin assembly is arranged beneath the openings 18 in the housing 4so that ambient light may enter the optical fiber 36 to illuminate thesight point. Moreover, the end of the tube-like part is arrangedgenerally coplanar with the housing flange 26 and coplanar with thesmallest diameter waist point of the narrow portion 20 as will bedeveloped below.

Referring once again to FIG. 2, the scope further includes at least oneannular indicator ring 8. According to a preferred embodiment, the ring8 has an outer diameter corresponding with the inner diameter of thenarrow portion 20 of the housing and an inner diameter correspondinggenerally with the inner diameter of the ring 28 of the ring pinassembly 6. The indicator ring is preferably colored differently fromthe remaining components of the scope so that it stands out when thescope is viewed off-axis as will be developed below.

The lens assembly 10 includes an outer lens frame 38 which has anannular configuration with an outer diameter corresponding generallywith the inner diameter of the housing narrow portion 20. The lens framecontains an annular recess for receiving a lens 40 in the shape of acircular disk and which is preferably formed of clear glass or plasticmaterial.

The retainer 12 holds the ring assembly, indicator ring and lensassembly in place within the housing. It has an annular configurationand includes external threads which engage the threads 16 on the innersurface of the housing. It is readily apparent that the retainer isremovably connected with the housing to allow for removal or replacementof the ring pin assembly 6, the indicator ring 8, and the lens assembly10. The retainer may be tightened by hand to press against the lensassembly, indicator, and ring pin assembly to hold them in place.

The housing, ring pin assembly ring, lens frame and retainer are formedof any durable rigid lightweight material such as metal or syntheticplastic, and the indicator ring is preferably formed of syntheticplastic material. A preferred metal for the housing is aluminum becauseof its light weight and durability. The indicator ring has a limiteddegree of compression and flexure to accommodate compressive forcesapplied by the retainer when it is tightened with respect to thehousing. The housing, ring pin assembly, lens frame and retainer are allpreferably formed, plated or painted in the same color with theindicator ring being formed of a different color so that it is visiblerelative to the remaining components. The housing flange 26 is alsopreferably engraved or coated with a different color or other type ofdifferentiating material so that it is visibly distinct relative to thehousing.

The scope is connected with a sight via the yoke 14. The yoke has aY-shaped configuration with the upper legs of the yoke being fastened tothe housing 4 via screws 44 which are arranged in threaded openings 46in the outer surface of the housing. With two points of connectionbetween the yoke legs and the housing, a more stable and reliableconnection is provided. The yoke is preferably hollow so that a lightfrom an auxiliary light source 48 is transmitted through the yoke andthrough an opening 50 in the housing aligned with the center of the yoketo transmit auxiliary light to optical fiber encircling the ring pinassembly. The auxiliary light source, such as low energy light emittingdiode, is optional and supplements the ambient light delivered to theinterior of the housing via the radial openings 18.

A level indicator 52 may also be connected with the housing via a screw54 to assist the archer in leveling the bow.

Referring now to FIGS. 10 and 11, different embodiments of the scopewill be described. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a preferredembodiment of the scope corresponding to the assembly shown anddescribed with reference to FIGS. 1-9 except that the lens assembly hasbeen replaced with a second indicator ring 108. As shown therein, thenarrow portion 20 of the housing extends in the region containing thering pin assembly 6, the first and second indicator rings 8, 108 and thelens assembly 10. This portion of the housing has a reduced diameterrelative to the open ends of the housing. Thus, the housing innersurface is tapered slightly from the viewing end of the housing, and theinner surface of the retainer 12 is tapered slightly from the rear endof the housing. The smallest diameter portion is the waist point.Technically, the waist point is a location on the narrowest innercircumferential portion of the housing. This portion extends through aplane that also contains the viewing end of the sight pin tube-like part34.

The narrow portion of the scope produces a Venturi-like effect thatallows the sight opening to appear substantially circular when viewedfrom various directions, even if the user is not viewing the scopestraight on. Thus, even if the user is not viewing the sight pin andtarget straight on through the scope along the longitudinal axis of thehousing, the varying diameter still provides a clear circular view toaid in the shot. The Venturi-like effect of the narrowed portion of thehousing permits the user to see an undistorted image (i.e., the viewingframe remains substantially circular) at viewing angles θ with respectto central longitudinal axis. The term “Venturi-like effect” as usedherein refers to the effect where the viewing frame remainssubstantially circular at viewing angles θ based on a narrowing in thecenter of the scope, as compared to the diameters at either end. Instandard scopes without the differing diameter as described, any changein viewing angle θ from the longitudinal axis results in the viewingframe becoming distorted. By implementing the differing inner diametersin the housing, a change in viewing angle θ from the axis in the rangeof one degree up to three degrees, or even up to about seven degrees,does not result in distortion and maintains a round viewing frame to theuser. In one implementation, a change in viewing angle θ in a rangegreater than zero degrees and up to about five degrees does not resultin distortion and maintains a round viewing frame to the user. Theseangular ranges are given only by way of example.

FIG. 11 shows an alternate embodiment of the invention wherein the ringpin assembly is removed and replaced with the lens assembly 10 generallycoplanar with the flange 26 and coplanar with the narrowest waistportion of the housing. In order to fill the void of the ring pinassembly, a second indicator ring 108 is provided adjacent to theindicator ring 8. The indicator rings and lens assembly are retained bythe retainer 12. The lens bears indicia 42 such as crosshairs, a point,or a circle as shown in FIG. 12 to assist in aligning the bow with atarget. The indicia are provided at the center of the lens.

FIG. 13 illustrates the view through the scope of FIG. 1 along thelongitudinal axis of the housing. The flange 26 and indicia 42 assistthe user with properly aligning the bow for accuracy. FIG. 14illustrates the view through the scope when the bow has beenover-torqued at full draw of the bow. Over-torqueing twists the bow andscope so that the indicator ring 108 is visible to the user. By changingthe grip pressure until the indicator ring is no longer visible, theuser can return the bow to its proper torque and increase the accuracyof the shot.

While the preferred forms and embodiments of the invention have beenillustrated and described, it will become apparent to those of ordinaryskill in the art that various changes and modifications may be madewithout deviating from the inventive concepts set forth above.

1. An archery scope, comprising (a) a generally cylindrical housing openat both ends and having a longitudinal axis; and (b) a sight assemblyadjustably connected with an inner surface of said housing intermediatethe ends thereof, said sight assembly including a ring having a diametercorresponding with an inner diameter of said housing and a sight portioncoaxial with said ring and said housing.
 2. An archery scope as definedin claim 1, wherein said housing inner surface tapers from the endsthereof toward an intermediate portion of said housing to define anarrow portion which produces a Venturi-like effect where the innerportion of the housing appears substantially circular when viewed fromvarious angles relative to said longitudinal axis.
 3. An archery scopeas defined in claim 2, wherein said housing narrow portion is arrangedin a central region of said housing relative to said longitudinal axis.4. An archery scope as defined in claim 3, wherein a smallest diameterportion of said housing narrow portion is arranged in said centralregion.
 5. An archery scope as defined in claim 4, wherein said sightassembly is coplanar with said smallest diameter portion of said housingnarrow portion.
 6. An archery scope as defined in claim 4, wherein saidhousing inner surface contains an annular seat within said narrowportion, said sight assembly being arranged in contiguous relation withsaid seat.
 7. An archery scope as defined in claim 6, and furthercomprising an annular retainer removably connected with one end of saidhousing, said retainer being operable to force said sight assemblyagainst said seat.
 8. An archery scope as defined in claim 7, whereinsaid annular retainer is threadably connected with said housing.
 9. Anarchery scope as defined in claim 6, wherein said housing seat containsa plurality of spaced openings and said ring includes at least one pegadapted to engage a selected opening in said seat, whereby the angularorientation of said sight ring relative to said housing may be adjusted.10. An archery scope as defined in claim 4, wherein said housingincludes an external annular flange generally coplanar with saidsmallest diameter portion of said narrow portion.
 11. An archery scopeas defined in claim 10, wherein said flange is generally coplanar withsaid sight portion.
 12. An archery scope as defined in claim 7, andfurther comprising at least one annular indicator ring arranged withinsaid housing between said ring and said retainer, whereby when saidscope is connected with a sight which mounted on a bow and the bow isunder excessive torque, said indicator ring is visible to a user.
 13. Anarchery scope as defined in claim 5, wherein said sight assemblyincludes a sight pin connected with said ring and having an end definingsaid sight portion.
 14. An archery scope as defined in claim 13, whereinsaid sight pin includes an optical fiber having one end at said sightportion and having a length which is coiled around said ring.
 15. Anarchery scope as defined in claim 14, wherein said housing contains aplurality of through-openings communicating with the interior of saidhousing narrow portion to allow ambient light to enter said opticalfiber.
 16. An archery scope as defined in claim 5, wherein said sightassembly includes a lens connected with said ring and having indicia ona surface thereof coaxial with said housing.
 17. An archery scope asdefined in claim 12, and further comprising a lens assembly arrangedwithin said housing between said retainer and said indicator ring. 18.An archery scope as defined in claim 5, and further comprising means forconnecting said scope with a sight.
 19. An archery scope as defined inclaim 18, wherein said connecting means comprises a yoke connected withsaid housing.
 20. An archery scope as defined in claim 19, wherein saidyoke has a Y-shaped configuration, with upper legs of said Y-shaped yokeconnected with said housing at two spaced locations.